Australia closes itself off from the outside world until July, but it doesn’t look much better at the GP locations in Asia. Therefore, the teams are preparing for a World Cup in 2021 with two Qatar GPs and a European tour.
Anyone who expected that the motorcycle.GP World Championship 2021 would no longer be affected too much by the corona pandemic is mistaken. So far, major events have not been allowed in any country in the world, there are strict and gentle lockdowns, there are curfews, travel bans, travel restrictions, quarantine regulations, and mandatory PCR tests on departure and entry.
Therefore, the Sepang MotoGP test had to be canceled in mid-January, it should have taken place from February 17th to 10th. The teams’ hopes that the test could alternatively take place in Jerez or Portimão were not fulfilled. Instead, the test in Doha (March 10th to 12th) and two days (March 6th and 7th) was extended.
But rookies like Enea Bastianini (currently a suspected corona case), Jorge Martin and Luca Marini have never been able to test their MotoGP bikes. In the past, rookies were able to familiarize themselves with the new category in November in Valencia, Jerez or at the special rookies test in Sepang.
The provisional GP calendar 2021 also had to be revised in January because Brno no longer hosts a Grand Prix and the Grand Prix in Termas de Río Hondo and Austin / Texas from April 4 and 11 had to be postponed indefinitely.
It is not yet clear whether the pit system in Las Termas that burned down in February can be repaired in time.
In the meantime, the provincial government of Buri Ram in Thailand has also canceled the Grand Prix for 2021. Dorna has not yet confirmed this setback, but the Spaniards no longer publish a new calendar every week, a lesson from 2020.
Because the overseas races in particular are threatened with cancellation, a second event was added to the program in Doha / Qatar on October Sunday (April 4th), and Portimão in Portugal was added to the program as a replacement race on April 18th.
More double events are to be expected – for example Spielberg, Misano, Aragón and Valencia are possible. Because Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta wants to bring 18 to 20 MotoGP races over the stage; In 2020 there were only 14.
At 18 to 20 MotoGP events, the important millions for the TV broadcasting rights flow into the Dorna box office, which is an extremely important source of income, as the fees from the organizers largely fail if they cannot sell audience tickets.
The overseas GP (with the exception of Qatar, because the government pays, spectators only come to 1,500 anyway) will only take place if the organizers can sell the maximum number of visitor tickets and thereby pay the full GP fee to Dorna.
In any case, the Phillip Island GP is now shaking significantly. Because the overseas organizers have to make a binding declaration to Dorna 90 days before their event whether they will hold the Grand Prix. For Australia that would be around June 20, 2021.
But Australia has just announced an extension of the coronavirus-related border closure for at least three months. The strict border controls will be extended to at least June 17, said Health Secretary Greg Hunt.
Australia has been largely isolated from the outside world for around a year. At that time, the government imposed international travel restrictions that only allow foreigners to enter the country in exceptional cases, similar to New Zealand.
The domestic virologists are now emphasizing that the Covid-19 situation abroad poses an unacceptable risk to public health in Australia. Minister Hunt wants to protect the population from the virus variants from Great Britain, Brazil and South Africa.
Australia got through the pandemic quite lightly – thanks to rigorous measures. With 25 million inhabitants, only just under 29,000 SARS-CoV-2 infections have been reported so far. Anyone who is allowed to enter Australia must first go to a special quarantine hotel for two weeks. Accommodation in such an institution, including meals, costs several thousand dollars. In Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia and New Zealand, tourists are kept away with similar measures. But the operators of the Mandalika Street Circuit still emphasize that
Therefore, for the time being, it must be expected that all Grand Prix 2021, with the exception of Qatar, will take place in Europe.
“In 2021 we have the advantage that we can start the MotoGP World Championship at the end of March instead of mid-July,” Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta told SPEEDWEEK.com.
Since more and more companies are now trying to buy vaccine doses that are not used in their countries, there is hope that by early summer some motorcycle factories, individual teams or Dorna will be able to vaccinate a large part of the 1,300 team members against corona and then travel overseas with one Vaccination records can be made easier. Whether herd immunity will then be achieved in Japan, Malaysia and so on and whether large events with full grandstands will be allowed as a result remains uncertain for the time being.
The updated MotoGP calendar 2021 (as of January 22nd)
March 28: Doha / Q *
04. April: Doha/Q*
18. April: Portimão/P
02. Never: Jerez / E
May 16. Le Mans / F
30. Never: Mugello / I
June 06: Barcelona / E
June 20: Sachsenring / D
27. June Assen / NL
July 11: KymiRing / FIN **
15. August: Red Bull Ring/A
29. August: Silverstone/GB
12. September: Aragón / E
19. September: Misano/I
October 03: Motegi / J
October 10: Buriram / TH
October 24th: Phillip Island / AUS
October 31: Sepang / MAL
14. November: Valencia/E
Without a date:
Termas de Río Hondo / AR
Circuit of the Americas/USA
Reservestrecke:
Mandalika International Street Circuit/IDN**
* Night races
** The route is still pending homologation
The planned winter tests for the MotoGP class (as of January 14th)
Shakedown test in Qatar: March 5th (for test drivers and rookies only)
Official test in Qatar: March 6th and 7th
Official test in Qatar: March 10-12
Winter tests of the Moto2 and Moto3 class
Qatar test: March 19-21
Private Tests Moto2
Jerez: 24./25. Februar
Portimão: 2nd / 3rd March
Valencia: 1st / 2nd March
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